I Remember Everyone Who Leaves
by harrypotterfan687
Summary: A short oneshot about Jonouchi and Anzu.


I Remember Everyone Who Leaves  
  
The Kame Shop stood barren and empty. The paint was  
  
peeling and very pale. The windows were dusty and some  
  
were cracked by thrown rocks. The sign was covered  
  
with graffiti. The door swung back and forth on its  
  
hinges in the wind. A gust of wind blew hundreds of  
  
leaves off the roof, along with a few crumbling tiles.  
  
The sign on the door was blowing left and right, but  
  
you could still make out the word CLOSED. The inside  
  
was just as bad as the outside; cold, dark, dusty and  
  
not a single customer in or out. Not one item stood on  
  
the empty shelves. A few cards lay on the floor,  
  
though and that was it. The counter was gathering more  
  
dust then anything else. The cash register was open  
  
and bare. The glass window on the counter was so  
  
clouded you couldn't see what was in it. The one thing  
  
that looked new in the shop was the notice on the  
  
front door…  
  
Sentenced to be torn down on November 15th, 2014.  
  
A young man stood in front of the Kame Shop, watching  
  
the CLOSED sign blow side to side. He was tall, thin  
  
and muscular, with slicked-back hair and dark brown  
  
eyes. He was wearing a plain green jacket and blue  
  
jeans. In his hand was a note that read: Please meet  
  
me at the G.S. That was where he was, but nobody was  
  
there. He sat down on an old park bench and gazed at  
  
the shop. He remembered when it was still up and  
  
running. He loved going down there with his friends,  
  
buying cards to play and to just chill out. The owner  
  
of the shop was the one who taught him how to use what  
  
he loved to do to make money. He had heeded the  
  
owner's advice and was now a pretty stable person. He  
  
had a home, food and a job he loved. But then the  
  
owner passed away. He and his friends tried to keep  
  
the game shop running, but it just wasn't good enough.  
  
Someone else bought it and that someone was going to  
  
have it torn down. The young man's eyes flashed. He  
  
hated who bought the shop. He hated him long before  
  
that.  
  
The man stood up. 'While I wait,' he thought to  
  
himself, 'I might as well have one last look around.'  
  
He pushed the door to the shop open and walked inside.  
  
Every step he made the floor creak loudly. He looked  
  
over at the shelves, remembering when they were full  
  
of different games and other doodads. He walked across  
  
the room, and wiped away the dust on the glass window  
  
on the counter. The case was empty, except for one  
  
thing; a playing card. It was old and torn, with the  
  
edges folding over. The young man walked behind the  
  
counter and reached into the case. He took out the  
  
card and wiped it off. There was a picture of a dragon  
  
on the front. A white dragon with fierce blue eyes…   
  
"Hey." Said a soft voice behind him. He turned  
  
quickly. Standing there was a woman.  
  
The woman was very young, possibly his age, maybe  
  
younger. She was thin and very pretty. Her dark hair  
  
was pulled back in a bun. Her bright eyes looked  
  
rather faded, depressed. She was wearing a tight black  
  
t-shirt with a gray sweat-suit jacket hanging loosely  
  
over it, with faded gray sweatpants. Her black shoes  
  
made clicking noises when she walked. They were tap  
  
shoes. Slung over her shoulder was a white and red  
  
faded duffle bag with the words Interpretive Dancing  
  
School written on the front. She smiled at the young  
  
man and he smiled back, for he knew this woman. He  
  
knew her very well.  
  
"Well, Anzu Mazaki, the famous dancing teacher. Long  
  
time, no see." He said finally. "Nice to see you too,  
  
Katsuya Jounouchi, top-rank duelist in Japan." She  
  
replied with a grin. Anzu ran across the room and  
  
threw her arms around Jounouchi's neck. He blushed,  
  
but instantly began to squirm. "Hey, hey! Too much  
  
love, too much love!" He shouted. Anzu laughed and let  
  
go. "I'm sorry," she said, blushing herself. "But I  
  
missed you so much…" Jounouchi nodded. "Eight years,  
  
last time I checked." Anzu nodded, her eyes growing  
  
glassy. "Look, you're probably wondering why I asked  
  
you to come here." She finally said. "It crossed my  
  
mind." He answered. She smiled, but lowered her head  
  
slightly. "I've been passing the shop a lot on my way  
  
to the theatre. I just can't stand it anymore; we have  
  
to keep him from knocking it down." Jounouchi gaped at  
  
her, then shook his head. "Anzu, we've already tried  
  
everything. It can't be helped…this place is old, and  
  
nobody could run it now." He replied, resting his hand  
  
on her shoulder. Anzu blinked tears out of her eyes.  
  
"But…but, Jounouchi…" she stammered, and she burst  
  
into tears. She collapsed to her knees on the floor  
  
and covered her face with her hands. "We… we just have  
  
to do something…anything…" she sobbed. Jounouchi knelt  
  
down and tilted her chin up. "I'm sorry," he said  
  
quietly. "We've tried everything in our power to keep  
  
the shop alive. But he simply won't listen to reason.  
  
Ryuji's still trying, but it's over."  
  
"Motoh!" Mr. Arashi shouted. "Quit daydreaming and get  
  
back to work!!" Yugi looked up from his desk. "Yes,  
  
sir." He murmured. He looked down at the specimen on  
  
his desk; a cracked red clay pot with hieroglyphs all  
  
over it. He studied the symbols for a few minutes,  
  
then scribbled down on his notepad: Ancient Egypt,  
  
around the Ramses II period. Tells the story of  
  
Judgment of the Dead. He scribbled key words under his  
  
notes, such as Anubis and Ma'at, the Egyptian gods who  
  
judged the dead. He also wrote down Millennium Scales.  
  
That's what was used in the Judgment Test. 'These will  
  
help with the display subtitle.' He thought as he put  
  
away the pot on one of the many shelves in the lab.  
  
Yugi Motoh, now grown up, was a junior archaeologist  
  
at the Domino Museum. It was a well-paid job, and Yugi  
  
was very good at it. He had been studying Ancient  
  
Egypt in high school and college to help figure out  
  
where his Millennium Puzzle came from. If he could  
  
figure out what period it was from, and what was  
  
happening at that time, maybe he could finally figure  
  
out where Yami's past originated. Hopefully soon, he  
  
will find the answer.   
  
"Hello-o-o, anyone home!?" It took perhaps thirty  
  
seconds for Yugi to realize that someone was prodding  
  
him on the back. He turned around to face a giant  
  
poker from on of the shelves. "OW!" he shouted as it  
  
pushed into his stomach. "Bakura! Knock it off!"  
  
Bakura placed the poker back on the shelf. "Well, I've  
  
been poking you for ten minutes, and I got impatient!"  
  
Bakura replied with a scoff. "You're always off in  
  
la-la land! Are you thinking about finding artifacts?"  
  
Yugi glared at his partner as he pushed his notepad  
  
under his desk. "No, but is it a horrible crime to  
  
doze off every now and then? I don't see you working  
  
24-7, either!" Bakura laughed sarcastically. Both of  
  
them were pretty bad! Suddenly the door blew  
  
open—again. "If you two don't stop chit-chatting,  
  
you're both fired!!" Mr. Arashi shouted angrily. As  
  
the door slammed, both boys burst out laughing. "Ya  
  
know," said Bakura, "Sometimes I wish it was like the  
  
old days with everyone else." Yugi sighed. He missed  
  
his friends a lot, but he couldn't let them distract  
  
him from work.  
  
"I implore you! I'll pay any price! Just don't—"No!  
  
The building belongs to me and I can do what I wish  
  
with it!" Ryuji Otogi slammed his hand down on the  
  
desk. "I will not give up!" He shouted angrily. "I'll  
  
give you anything…I'll give you my whole company!!  
  
Just don't tear it down!" Seto Kaiba looked up from  
  
his laptop. "You drive a hard bargain," he said with a  
  
trace of sarcasm. "But no." Otogi glared at him from  
  
across the table. "You…you…" he stammered, fury  
  
flowing through his body. Kaiba smiled icily. "Give it  
  
up, Ryuji." He sneered. "You'll never win. That  
  
building is mine; I'm tearing it down and building my  
  
own store. Kaiba Corporation products need to be  
  
distributed to the public, and besides, the Kame Shop  
  
is over, through, kaput. Yugi and his geeky pals gave  
  
up on it, why don't you?" Otogi clenched his fists.  
  
"They didn't give up," he said, willing himself not to  
  
strangle Kaiba. "They put their faith in me. None of  
  
them have the power to overrun you but I do. I have a  
  
company of my own, and mark my words, Seto Kaiba, I  
  
will save that store, fix it up, and make it a game  
  
store once again." Kaiba shook his head and grinned  
  
wickedly. "You sound like a prophet. I have no time  
  
for this. Get out." He said icily. Otogi stared at him  
  
with an anger so intense it threatened to explode.  
  
Then he grabbed his briefcase and papers and stormed  
  
out of Kaiba's office.  
  
Otogi walked out of Kaiba Corp., cursing under his  
  
breath. He hated Kaiba. He hated him with a hatred so  
  
red-hot you couldn't imagine it. As he went to his  
  
car, he saw his business partner leaning against it.  
  
"How did it go?" He asked. Otogi shook his head. "Not  
  
good, Honda, not good. He won't give it up; I even had  
  
to resort to giving up my company, but no, he's  
  
stubborn as a mule." Honda snickered. "More like a  
  
jackass." He replied. At this Otogi laughed. "Yeah, a  
  
jackass." He unlocked his car and got in. "You need a  
  
lift?" he asked out the window. Honda shook his head.  
  
"Nah, I'll walk. Thanks though." Otogi backed out of  
  
the parking lot, waved goodbye to Honda, and drove  
  
away. Honda headed down the street, swearing under his  
  
breath. "No-good, rotten, selfish hell-born bitch." He  
  
swore, fighting to keep his voice low. "Kaiba thinks  
  
he's so-o-o great, with his fancy stores and gismos."  
  
Honda clenched his fists and fought not to scream it.  
  
As he reached his apartment house, his fiancée walked  
  
out to greet him. He wrapped his arms around her,  
  
caressing her long auburn hair. "You are definitely a  
  
sight for sore eyes, Shizuka." He said softly. Her  
  
brown eyes gazed deeply into his. "I take it didn't go  
  
so well." Shizuka answered. "No, it didn't." Honda  
  
replied, gripping her shoulders. "Otogi's still  
  
fightin', but in my opinion, it's a lost cause."  
  
Shizuka's eyes filled with tears. "It's not fair," she  
  
sobbed quietly. "How could Kaiba be so cruel? After  
  
all we did for him!"  
  
A young boy stood in the graveyard. In front of him  
  
was a tombstone marked 'Sugoroku Motoh, Beloved  
  
grandfather.' The date was beneath the scripture. The  
  
boy was scrawny with shaggy black hair and soft  
  
lavender-gray eyes. His school uniform hung loosely on  
  
him, wavering in the breeze. He heard crunching of dry  
  
leaves behind him and turned. Standing there was a  
  
girl a few years younger than him. Her long blond hair  
  
was tied in two plaited pigtails, hanging by her ears.  
  
Her aquamarine-colored eyes were glassy and red from  
  
previous crying. She smiled weakly, and he smiled  
  
back. "Hey, Rebecca." He said quietly. Rebecca walked  
  
up beside him, staring at Sugoroku's grave. "Hello,  
  
Mokuba. I've missed you at school." She replied.  
  
Mokuba shrugged. "Seto's been going on lots of  
  
business trips lately." He said softly. "He wants me  
  
with him." Rebecca looked up at him, a trace of pity  
  
in her eyes. "He's miserable, isn't he?" she asked,  
  
readying herself for the answer. "Yes." Mokuba  
  
answered, in a gray voice. "He can't stand that  
  
everybody's against him. He can't show his face in the  
  
city; they'll mock him and call him a monster. The  
  
Board is tired of all his suggestions. He's scared.  
  
One rejection more, and he'll go straight to jail."  
  
Rebecca rested her head on Mokuba's shoulder. "He's  
  
ruined his own life." She said, gazing at Sugoroku's  
  
tombstone.  
  
"His company is the only powerful company in this  
  
whole city. Without it, the city's stock will crash.  
  
There will be no more Domino City, or Battle City.  
  
People will lose their jobs, their homes, their…  
  
families." Rebecca closed her eyes, remembering the  
  
day that Sugoroku died. There was Yugi, sobbing over  
  
the hospital bed. There was Jounouchi, holding a  
  
hysteric Shizuka in his arms. Anzu on her knees,  
  
crying into her hands. Honda and Ryuji, lowering their  
  
heads, looking like statues. Then she heard Yugi  
  
shouted angrily; "So you're just going to give up?!  
  
You're going to die of shame? Why, Grandpa, why?!" He  
  
threw his prized deck of cards out the window. They  
  
blew helter-skelter in the high winds. "Fine!" he  
  
shouted, "FINE! If you're giving up, then so am I! I'm  
  
never dueling again!!" "Yugi!" Anzu cried, grabbing  
  
his shoulders. "What are you saying? Grandpa wouldn't  
  
want you to give up just like that!" Yugi pulled away  
  
from her. "He did," he cried, pointing at the covered  
  
form on the bed. "He did, so why can't I?!" He pushed  
  
Anzu away and ran out the door. Rebecca had tried to  
  
chase him, but Honda stopped him. "Leave him alone,"  
  
he said quietly. "He's upset; he'll come around." But  
  
by the time Yugi came around, it was too late. The  
  
Kame Shop was bought, and everyone had left. He  
  
started over from scratch, became an archaeologist,  
  
and left as well. "It's not fair." Rebecca cried  
  
suddenly, tears pouring. "All hope is gone and it's  
  
not fair!"  
  
Jounouchi and Anzu stood on Anzu's front porch.  
  
"Thanks for meeting me." Said Anzu. "I'm glad we got a  
  
chance to talk before I…" she trailed off. "I…what?"  
  
asked Jounouchi, puzzled. Anzu's eyes brimmed with  
  
tears. "I'm leaving." She said softly, her voice  
  
shaking. Jounouchi shook his head. "No…no, not you  
  
too." He begged, refusing to believe what he just  
  
heard. "I'm going to New York." Anzu said. "I can't  
  
stand to be in this city any longer." "Don't!"  
  
Jounouchi cried suddenly, gripping her shoulders. "I  
  
can't be alone; Yugi and Bakura are never here,  
  
they're always at work; Ryuji moved away to keep up  
  
with Kaiba. Honda and Shizuka moved away so Honda  
  
could work for Ryuji; Mokuba and Rebecca are in junior  
  
high, they're never home." Jounouchi forced himself to  
  
hold back tears. "Anzu, please don't leave. Everyone's  
  
left me. My own sister left me. Don't you leave me,  
  
too—I can't live without you!" Anzu burst into tears  
  
and crumpled to the ground. Jounouchi caught her and  
  
held her tightly in his arms. "I…I can't…" Anzu  
  
stammered. "I can't, Jounouchi…I have to leave, to  
  
move on, to fulfill the dream I've always had." She  
  
looked up, into his eyes. "Soon, you shall leave,  
  
too." She said. "We'll all go, we'll forget about each  
  
other, we'll go on." Jounouchi gazed into her soft  
  
blue eyes. Slowly he understood and let go of her  
  
shoulders. Then he leaned forward and kissed her  
  
softly on the lips. "I'll remember you, though." He  
  
said as he turned away.  
  
"I'll remember everyone who leaves." 


End file.
